Organic Garden Seeds of Autumn
Organic Gardening Can Increase Seedlings
Organic gardening opens the door for seeds to germinate wherever they fall. No herbicides will interfere. Nature provides rich rewards for the receptive garden.
*To many people, autumn represents a conclusion. The end of summer, the end of the growing season, the end of warm days and summer vacation. Fall means departure, as the fruits and vegetables are harvested, deciduous foliage colors and drops, butterflies and birds migrate, frogs, toads and mammals hibernate. We focus on putting the garden to bed. We clear out the remains of our plants. We put our tools away. Furry animals that stay for the upcoming months thicken their coats against the cold. Leaves pile up on the ground, giving the earth a winter coat as well.
*With all this preparation for the big freeze, it's easy to lose sight of the long view. As we put down the mulch to protect the beds, we are also coating the ground to prevent weeds and nourish the soil. As we cut down many dried plants, we leave some for winter interest and food for the birds. The cocoons, migrations, and hibernation, harvesting and thickened coats represent a basic life instinct here on earth: survival.
*The most obvious activity pointing to the future this time of year is certainly all around us: the seeds that form in abundance. Some are contained in the fruit of the plant. Others burst forth in an array of broadcasting methods. Milkweed seeds become airborne, burs are transported by mobile animals (ourselves included), and enterprising squirrels plant nuts.
One of my favorite activities this time of year is to stand near the flower beds where Phlox grow. On a sunny, still day I listen for the subtle popping of the tiny seedheads scattering their descendants. Tiny as they are, Phlox seedhead explosions can cast the seeds as far as twenty feet away. Every year, we see the results of the cross pollination among the phlox. There is an impressive variety of color combinations all over the yard. Since I don't use any herbicides, many phlox emerge every year and I can decide which plants to weed out and which to leave or transplant.
Seeds remind us that, as one aspect in life ends, another begins. Nature provides for our needs. We can store our harvest for the winter. We can save and share the seeds from the many plants we grow. The seeds will grow into new life some day. The yearly cycle is a circle with no beginning and no end.
